I finally caught this once it hit HBO last week. I loved the movie and Phoenix's performance was great, but only due to it being based on a comic book character did it gross over $1B. Another IP-less movie that was acted just as brillantly and had a script about societal issues and mental health wouldn't have come close. But that's also the thing about the Joker character. It's probably the most interesting comic-book character to see brought to life.So I FINALLY caught this tonight. It's definitely haunting and shows that Phoenix is great at reigning in self-control over his own performances. It would have been easy to go over the top with the character and he avoided that.
Also, I'm still amazed that such a brutally disturbing film was able to join the billionaire's club. Guess that there truly is no such thing as bad publicity.